Former U.S. Representative and leading gun control advocate Gabrielle Giffords says she is hopeful that the country will enact meaningful reforms in response to rising gun violence—despite the failure of past efforts to pass legislation.
Giffords was speaking as the U.S. deals with yet another wave of mass shootings. These include the shootings at Buffalo’s grocery store on May 14, where 10 people were killed and Uvalde Elementary School shooting, where 20 students and 2 teachers were shot to death.
“I’m optimistic,” Giffords said at the TIME100 Summit Tuesday in New York City. “It will be a long, hard haul, but I’m optimistic.”
Giffords was a Time 100 Honoree in 2013. She is also a survivor from gun violence. In Tucson’s 2011 massacre, she was fatally shot in the head. Giffords, a former Arizona representative, has been both a symbol for gun control and fierce advocate ever since her assasination.
Charlotte Alter (Time Senior Correspondent) asked Giffords about her feelings in the wake the latest shootings. “I’m sad,” Giffords replied. “I’m sad, I’m sad, I’m sad.”
Giffords was joined by Julie Cohen and Betsy West on stage, to talk about the importance of anti-gun violence prevention. Cohen and West co-directed TIME Studios’ documentary. Gabby Giffords Won’t Back DownThis year, SXSW premiered the film “The Lie”, which debuted at SXSW in January.
Giffords’ recovery and return to politics as well as her efforts at gun control are all documented in the film. Giffords was not only recovering from the physical injuries she sustained, but also suffered a brain injury which left her speech impaired and aphasia.
In response to these attacks, bipartisan discussions are currently underway in both chambers of Congress for tighter gun legislation. The gun rights lobby prepares to resist any proposals.
Cohen noted that the Democrat-controlled House of Representatives is “quite likely” to pass a form of gun prevention legislation this week, though the Senate—which is evenly split—is the “bigger barrier” as it would need to reach 60 votes to overcome a filibuster.
“With some of the horrors we’ve all seen the past couple of weeks, perhaps there’s a chance of getting to 60 [votes],” Cohen added. She turned to Giffords and said, “You’re the optimist. Do you think?” “Yes, yes,” Giffords said.
West claimed that working with Giffords to make the documentary made gun violence more personal for her.
“To see the consequences of gun violence, to see what happened with Gabby Giffords and what Gabby has gone through…it certainly opened my eyes,” West said. “This is a scourge on our country, and something that Gabby’s working very hard to change.”
Cohen and West, the Academy Award-nominated director team behind several documentaries on pioneering icons such as RBG (2018), Julia2021 My name is Pauli Murray (2021).
TIME 100 Summit, an extension to the TIME 100 annual list of influential people around the globe is a live event. The summit brings together leaders of the TIME 100 global community in order to highlight solutions and inspire action towards a better future. This year’s summit features a variety of impactful speakers across a diverse range of sectors, including politics, business, health and science, culture, and more.
Speakers for the 2022 TIME 100 Summit include Apple CEO Tim Cook, producer Mindy Kaling, filmmaker Taika Waititi, U.S. Special Presidential Envoy for Climate John Kerry, musician Jon Batiste, Barbadian Prime Minister Mia Mottley, NBA champion, entrepreneur, and philanthropist Dwayne Wade, #MeToo founder Tarana Burke, ACLU deputy director for transgender justice Chase Strangio, Christian Siriano founder and creative director Christian Siriano, Brother Vellies founder and creative director Aurora James, Netflix head of global TV Bela Bajaria, author and poet Cathy Park Hong, Olympic freestyle skiing champion Eileen Gu, author, poet, and president of the Mellon Foundation Elizabeth Alexander, BioNTech SE senior vice president Dr. Katalin Karikó, Ukrayinska Pravda Sevgil Muzaieva is the editor in chief, as well as Marc Benioff (CEO of Salesforce and TIME), and Marc Benioff (chairman and Salesforce chair).
TIME 100 Summit, an extension to the TIME 100 annual list of influential people around the globe is a live event. The summit brings together leaders of the TIME 100 global community in order to highlight solutions and inspire action towards a better future. This year’s summit features a variety of impactful speakers across a diverse range of sectors, including politics, business, health and science, culture, and more.
Speakers for the 2022 TIME 100 Summit include Apple CEO Tim Cook, producer Mindy Kaling, filmmaker Taika Waititi, U.S. Special Presidential Envoy for Climate John Kerry, musician Jon Batiste, Barbadian Prime Minister Mia Mottley, NBA champion, entrepreneur, and philanthropist Dwayne Wade, #MeToo founder Tarana Burke, ACLU deputy director for transgender justice Chase Strangio, Christian Siriano founder and creative director Christian Siriano, Brother Vellies founder and creative director Aurora James, Netflix head of global TV Bela Bajaria, author and poet Cathy Park Hong, Olympic freestyle skiing champion Eileen Gu, author, poet, and president of the Mellon Foundation Elizabeth Alexander, BioNTech SE senior vice president Dr. Katalin Karikó, Ukrayinska Pravda Sevgil Muzaieva, editor in chief of TIME and Salesforce chairs and co-CEO Marc Benioff is also the editor.
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